The Witcher 3

I can confirm there are masks you may buy, and Geralt will wear them like a bloody great idiot. It’s brilliant. It later turns out that these masks are part of a mission, but I didn’t need to fulfill that objective when the time came because I found them earlier and bought them all.

Goofy Masked Geralt is best Geralt.

Oh god, mounted combat is awful. Have you tried it? Remember how the trailers make it seem awesome, how you can ride by a foe and decapitate them in a single swing? Yeah, it sucks. It's super akward. For one, Gerald can mostly only attack the right side easily (makes sense as he's right handed) but the game doesn't tell you that. And when on horseback he swings his sword so slow you're likely to miss the target and be unable to do a follow up strike.

It's a really good game, but it makes the few terrible areas stand more visible.

edited 19th May '15 3:40:59 AM by Ghilz

Wait, there is mounted combat in the game? I was too busy laughing at the goofy masks and The joke romance ending I mentioned earlier.

EDIT: Welp, scratch that , The horse and mounted combat control like arse! but ground combat is more fun

edited 19th May '15 3:41:03 AM by YoKab

yeah, you can use your sword from horseback. It sucks. Don't do it unless you like getting hit.

Picked up the game. Won't have time for it for another 9 hours.

Any early game tips yet?

Avoid Alchemy? Otherwise no. It's fairly simple. Practice your dodge a bit and combat is a breeze. I recommend maybe picking "Sun and Star" as your first talent, as it gives you health regen during daytime, and stamina regen during night time. Makes healing free and easy.

On the subject of Alchemy. How shitty is the system? I've got about 4 hours and half on my save atm. And I've yet to successfully brew ANYTHING. Not even a single dose of swallow. I've been taking my time, doing side quest, looted every bush in sight on my travel. Even bought extra formula from the herbalist in the first village. And yet I've not been able to get all the components (in required quantities) to make a single potion, oil, or bomb.

• Loot everything. You’ll need even the most useless-seeming stuff for alchemy and crafting. As we discussed eariler, Alchemy is a pain in the ass.
• Mounted combat is a no-no, don't even try it.
• Don’t sell your starting armor. There is a way to turn them into better versions via crafting system.
• Using the witcher senses will show you everything you can pick up in the vicinity.
• You can craft armor at the blacksmith/armorer. The level of mastery he possesses will define which armors he can craft.
• Weapons can be upgraded with runes, while armor is improved with glyphs. If you decide you want to take a rune/glyph out of your gear, you’ll have to choose which one to save – the item or the upgrade material.
• When you drink a lot of potions, keep an eye of your Toxicity. If the bar is full, you’ll start losing health.
• Make sure you always have a monster trophy equipped. They provide valuable bonuses at no cost.
• Food is not as powerful as the potions, but it’s free and there’s lots of it.
• Some monsters only come out during the day, some during night time.
• When you pass near a point of interest, it will be marked on your map.
• Don't ignore quests or leave them for later – tackling the main story might trigger their disappearance.
• Visiting notice boards in towns will reveal nearby points of interest.
• Some objects can be destroyed with the Aard sign.
• Memorize the controls. The game will constantly remind you of them, but that won't do you any good in a tight spot.
• If you get caught while breaking the law, the guards will attack you, and they’re not ones to mess with. They’ll beat you up and take half of your money.
• Meditating will heal your wounds and replenish your potions, but it can’t be done in a bind.

edited 19th May '15 3:54:56 AM by YoKab

At the beginning of "Lilac and Gooseberries", after killing the ghouls, there is some Crystal Skull at the ground. Not sure what it does.

Location◊

Map◊

edited 19th May '15 4:01:45 AM by YoKab

Ey, finally got it!

Just started the game. Guy in a bath. Naked chick but god forbid we should see a man's butt 'cause two seconds later he's fully dressed. Tsk tsk.

Waiting for it to fully download. Is all of the DLC already included, or do you need to manually download them?

There's DLC?

Yeah, those 16 free bits.

Though those may be on the marketplace, not in the actual game.

Also, just started, doing the arsonist quest. Looks like White Orchard is a good place to farm drowners to make Swallow.

Also, Nilfgaard has somewhat impressed me with their dedication to their armies. Regular wages and a pension for your family if you die in the field? Wow.

It seems Aedirn and Temeria have already fallen to Nilfgaard. Not surprised, considering they were both without their kings, though Redania and Kaedwen are apparently still around. I do wonder what happened to Anaise, though.

Maybe someone will mod the PC version to "fix" the alchemy system somehow. Or maybe there'll be an official patch that'll improve it in some way.

I actually haven't found it that bad, then again I'm making it a point to take every herb that I can. That and the fact that each brewed potion has multiple uses before it's gone also helps. I've made multiple ones from hunting drowners in White Orchard.

Right now I"m doing that quest where you have to defeat the Noonwraith. Gonna head back to the abandoned village and look for bear fat. I've got enough plant matter to make Spectre Oil, just need the bear fat and I'm not confident enough in my abilities to actually find and kill a bear.

You really don't need the oil. At all. The wraith is a bitch.

Meh, just want to be safe.

Besides, even if I don't need it I'll have it the next time I run into a ghost.

edited 19th May '15 8:09:43 PM by theLibrarian

Implying I don't? Still short 1 of anything to make anything. Fuck this alchemy system.

Good news is that besides making Alchemy completely grindy, it's also completely unnecessary. About 7 hours into the game, haven't had to drink a single potion so far. I guess the system was designed to be a punishing crutch for those who suck or something? Like "You can't fight, well here, grind the shit out of alchemy materials then. It'll teach you to fuck up."

edited 19th May '15 9:01:57 PM by Ghilz

I've had to, mostly because I'm not really parrying. I've used a few Swallows.

Maybe you're just not looking in the right places? I've found Ciridain or whatever plant you need in a good number of places.

edited 19th May '15 9:15:11 PM by theLibrarian

Not parrying either. As Piccolo says: Dodge

(Or stun lock your enemies with blows and signs. It helps that an ability gives you free health regen outside of combat so begin all fights at max hp).

Cool. I'm 101 points away from Level 2 so hopefully with the "Devil in the Well" being completed I can get a better ability. I'm also making good use of Quen though the stamina thing is annoying. I actually preferred 2's stamina system.

Though I think after I'm done with the Noonwraith quest I'll ride around the area getting to all of the points of interest, such as that camp of what looks like bandits that are set up in some kind of old ruined castle on a hill that I can't find a way to the top of.

That's the Nilfgaardian garison. You go there on the main quest after doing the tavern bit...

Honestly, the combat so far is ... meh. Like, counter attacks are basically pointless. Coz you fight too many enemies to make much use of them. I feel like the combat is missing a little something to give it depth.

Geralt's a Deadpan Snarker. Not at all how I expected him to be.

He's always been like that, though.

And okay. I do admit that counters don't really seem effective in combat, unless maybe it's a one-on-one fight where you're not being attacked by multiple enemies. Not to mention the counter doesn't do any damage.

And the time window for the counters is punishingly small in regular combat. But there's also the fact that, on controller, there's no easy way to switch between signs without using a goddamn menu (That doesn't even fully pauses the game while you navigate it!). And that removes a whole lot of depth from the game.

edited 19th May '15 9:38:41 PM by Ghilz